I have had that cover off with it in the frame but I forget what I was fixing at the time. (I think I "accidently" lost that bolt for next time LOL)

 

LOL....my lower rear bolt was lost as well. Still seals fine though...[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]. The running joke is if I look at it the plastic jumps off...[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-sad.gif[/img]. Hey I am still gonna get that 1 way bro....saving too buy all of the necessary parts as we speak.

 

Ya'll are doing better than me, I can't even get one full ride out of mine.[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-disgusted.gif[/img]

Its down now for a new clutch...I didn't have near as much trouble with the cover as I have in the past. I kept the motor all bolted down too.

 

I feel kinda lucky, all ive had to replace was every bolt that rattled loose, a caliper bent, new rear brakes and bearings, chain and sprockets. But just the other day i was movin it around by the wheelie bar and it just snapped where it was sorta welded and then to top it off those nuts that are welded into the subframe came the fu<k out. So now i got to add to the list of fixin **** before i trade it in.

 

You gotta tell me how you done it. I rotated the cover while moving it forward and barely got it off....but had too unbolt the engine too get it back on and not screw the gasket up. Of course the engine got cocked (not wanting too move back) and the swingarm was binded and did'nt want too go back in place + the punch I used too knock the swingarm bolt got hung in there....LMAO! The only thing that saved it from being chopped up is I had another 6 on hand..[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]. THe clutch basket hits the cover and there is no room.

 

Its all about fessinessin' Gary(yes I spelled it that way on purpose. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img] ) I've had mine off about 4-5 times now(Versah didn't tell me the pressure plate had to line up with the basket a certain way. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-mad.gif[/img] ). It will work you just have to be patient. It only goes back in one way, although I did mess up my gasket one of the times I got impatient. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-blush.gif[/img]

 

Yep, you have too align the marks up for proper operation. Did the clutch not work at all? Would you mind walking me through your process of getting the cover on? This would be beneficial next time for me...[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img].

 

[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-blush.gif[/img] I'm not the best teacher, but I'll explain it to ya as best I can. What you want to try to do is keep the case as level(left to right)as possible. I then try to lean the top of the case towards me( only enough to work the lower part of the cover underneath the clutch body). Work the left lower corner(corner with the impossible bolt) in at the same time as the lower part of the cover. **Very important to have the bolt already in the hole before you slide in the cover.** If you don't keep the cover pretty much inline with the motor(as I'm sure you've noticed) it doesn't fit. It just barely squeezes in there. I'm sorry, I know I'm not much help, but I'd be able to show you alot better than trying to explain it to you. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-frown.gif[/img]

 

It seems the original creator of this thread bought a 2003 Raptor...Good choice!

But I still just wanted to put my 10 cents in.....

It should be noted that somewhere around 25000 2001 Raptors were produced. I would venture to guess that more 01 Raptors have NOT had a 2nd gear issue then have had them. In fact if you look in the Blue Trx forum there are less then 100 serial numbers listed. While I personally think this should be enough for Yamaha to start a recall, it seems to be a very low overall percentage.

Every non-Raptor quad owning friend I have seems to have had many more issues with reliability then me. Some with axel problems, some with broken frames, some with broken swing arms, others with motor issues, and even two different 250r's that required a tranny rebuild because of broken gears.

(Actually the only two Quad's in our group that have never had a riding day ended early by something that couldn't be fixed is a babied 400ex and my Raptor)

I'm not saying that a 2001 Raptor is the most reliable quad ever made, but basing its total reliability on a few broken 2nd gears is a little extreme. Yes, there seems to be a higher likelihood that a 2001 Raptor will have 2nd gear issues then other quads but assuming that all the rest are going to have issues some day is a stretch. I have logged many hundreds of hours riding mine pretty hard at the track, dunes, and mountain trails without any tranny issues (Knocking on wood). If it does happen someday I will still have less total down time then most of my buddies, and I will also have a good reason to upgrade the inside of my motor..

[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img]

 

You posted a good opnion though most people probably dont know of these forums and may have problems with there trannys, so saying that the majority of problems from these forums members cannot be based on the majority of 01 raptor owners out there.